Ethical smartphone set to be launched
Wednesday, May 8, 2013 - 12:26:46
Hundreds of millions of people now own smartphones across the world, although there are still plenty of issues associated with this industry.
As well as the manufacturing process for these devices resulting in the release of lots of carbon into the atmosphere, old handsets which are not properly disposed of can have their own negative environmental impacts.
However, a new project called FairPhone is hoping to produce an eco-friendly, ethical smartphone, that will help consumers avoid the more problematic alternatives, according to The Register.
Just 5,000 pre-orders for the FairPhone are required to bring the device to market and the makers are looking to produce it using minerals and components which have not caused violence or human suffering in their sourcing.
This basically means that the phone will not indirectly go towards funding dictatorships in certain countries where precious materials originate and can end up used in modern devices purchased in the west.
As well as being ethically manufactured, the FairPhone will be sold with a very slim profit margin and will also be very easy to recycle after it has passed its usable lifespan.
Pricing for the FairPhone will be around 300 if it ever manages to get the 5,000 pre-orders that are necessary to begin production.
In terms of hardware, it will feature two SIM card slots, a 4.3 inch touchscreen display and the latest version of the Android operating system. This makes it a solid mid-range offering, which will not require that buyers have to accept too many compromises to achieve their ethical mobile ideals.
Interestingly, the pre-order system has its own pre-registration platform, from which people will be selected to actually be able to buy the device. With 12,000 signed up, it looks more than likely that it will indeed go into production.
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